[Sca-cooks] Period Tomatoes

[Phil Troy / G. Tacitus Adamantius]

Also sprach Pat:
>My friend with the tomato problem just posted this to the Meridian 
>Tavern Yard:
>"If you wish to explore this from a scientic point of view you will
>find that the decision to place S.A. as the source of the 'modern
>tomato' is based on the work of a Russian Scientist who held the
>view that the 'area with the greatest number of indiginous strains'
>of any plant is the most likely source.

That statement is probably empirically true, but using indigeneity 
(is that a word? nativeness???) as proof of origin is bad logic. It 
probably originated here because there are a lot of varieties here 
that originated here???

>  Peru won out with about 13
>varieties -- Turkey was second with about 8. This indicates several
>things:
>1) strains of 'tomatoes' exist in Turkey that do not exist in Peru

It may be true, but it's not supported or indicated by any statement 
above. Could he be thinking of "strained tomatoes"? I hear Achmed's 
Best is a good brand.

>2) the decision to grant Peru as the absolute 'source' is not
>scientifically 'proved'"

There's that about circumstantial evidence. What is it about "most 
likely" that this person doesn't understand?

Adamantius
-- 




"S'ils n'ont pas de pain, vous fait-on dire, qu'ils  mangent de la 
brioche!" / "If there's no bread to be had, one has to say, let them 
eat cake!"
	-- attributed to an unnamed noblewoman by Jean-Jacques 
Rousseau, "Confessions", 1782

"Why don't they get new jobs if they're unhappy -- or go on Prozac?"
	-- Susan Sheybani, assistant to Bush campaign spokesman Terry 
Holt, 07/29/04